If you are planning a destination wedding in Tuscany and Castiglion del Bosco is on your list, you already have good taste. This is an 800-year-old estate, a real Tuscan village carefully restored and surrounded by kilometers of protected woodland. It is the kind of place that feels complete on its own, with infinity pools, a working kitchen garden, an 18-hole golf course, and even a small medieval church for those who want an intimate ceremony. Twenty minutes from Montalcino, it sits in one of the most beautiful corners of the Val d’Orcia, and it shows in every single frame.
I have been shooting weddings here for years, and every time I walk the estate I still find something new worth capturing. You can see a full example in this real wedding I photographed at Castiglion del Bosco. Most people think of the iconic tower and the Romanesque church, and yes, those are stunning. But what really makes Castiglion del Bosco exceptional for photography is everything in between. The stone courtyards, the long shaded alleys, the old winery walls with their texture and patina, the unexpected terraces with views that open up when you least expect it. I know this property well enough to have a mental map of every great spot at every hour of the day.
Sitting above the entire estate are the ruins of a medieval fortress, over a thousand years old. It is one of those places that is hard to describe until you see it in person. The stone walls, the way the structure rises out of the hillside, the sense that it has been watching over this land for centuries. Many couples choose to hold their ceremony right at its base, and it is easy to understand why. As a backdrop for an outdoor ceremony, it is unlike anything else in Tuscany, and for portraits before or after the vows, the scale and texture of those ancient stones give the images a weight that no manicured garden ever could.
One of my favorite things about this venue is that you can photograph inside one of the most beautiful working vineyards in all of Tuscany. Rows of vines rolling across the hills with the Montalcino landscape stretching out behind them. When the light drops in the afternoon and the Val d’Orcia hills go golden in the distance, there is no better backdrop for a couple portrait anywhere in Italy. It is the kind of image that needs no explanation when you show it to people back home.
Knowing a venue is not just about having been there once. It is about understanding how the light moves through the estate across the seasons, which corners catch that warm late-afternoon reflection, and where to position a couple so the landscape becomes part of the story rather than just a backdrop. Because I am based in Tuscany and have worked at Castiglion del Bosco many times, I come to your wedding day with a plan and the flexibility to adapt it. No wasted time, no guesswork.
My approach is documentary at its core, with a modern and creative edge. I prefer to keep things natural and let you move through the space while I work around you. The estate does a lot of the heavy lifting. My job is to be in the right place at the right moment.
I keep my studio intentionally small. When you book me, you get me, Francesco, on your wedding day and through every step of the editing process. I do not hand off the shooting or the post-production to anyone else. I take on a limited number of weddings each year so I can give each one the focus it deserves. If you are considering Castiglion del Bosco for your Tuscany wedding, I would love to talk about what we could create there together.
Castiglion del Bosco Wedding photographer Bertha+Joe | Elegant laid-back wedding in the exclusive Val d'Orcia Hey folks! Today, I'm gonna tell you about this unique wedding I had the opportunity to photograph last summer here in Tuscany, in one of the most...